1. The Upside of Nationalism: Politics for the Common Good in India
- Author:
- Amanda Pearson
- Publication Date:
- 10-2016
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University
- Abstract:
- “The quality of life that a person leads,” writes Prerna Singh, “depends critically on where she leads it.” How Solidarity Works for Welfare: Subnationalism and Social Development in India is at its core an unpacking of that sentence and its implications for international development. Why do some states in India deliver better schools and health care systems than others? Economic factors explain some of this variation, but there are other forces, too. Singh’s novel argument marks a departure from existing theories about social welfare, which emphasize the importance of economic development or the nature and extent of democracy and political parties. Instead, Singh attributes this variation to the strength of collective identity—the sense of “we-ness”—among the state’s citizens. Her award-winning book received the Woodrow Wilson Prize for the best book in politics and the Barrington Moore Prize for the best book in comparative historical sociology, both in 2016. What was it that so impressed them? Using an innovative mix of statistical and comparative historical analyses, Singh packed her book with a wealth of evidence on the perplexing differences in social welfare between places that are otherwise similar demographically, socially, economically, and politically.
- Topic:
- Demographics, Nationalism, Socioeconomics, and Subnationalism
- Political Geography:
- Pakistan, India, and Asia